**The LH flight you are upgrading must be an LH flight, not a UA codeshare flight. If you have a UA codeshare flight, you can call websupport and they will (put you on hold and] change your itinerary to one with an LH flight#.

Note that UA websupport might give you a new ticket # when you do the above, but if the original ticket # was 016 UA stock, it will remain so, and thus you will still be earning RDMs at the UA rate (11x for a 1K), not the *A rate. In case of a $6000 biz fare for LAX-FRA that you are trying to upgrade to F for example, as a 1K you would earn 66,000 UA RDM if booked as a UA flight. And even though after booking you get them to change the UA flight # from a UA codeshare flight to an LH flight, the 016 ticket stock sticks, and you earn 66,000 RDMs.

(FYI, had the ticket stock been an LH stock, the RDM's earned would be 5790 miles x 150% = 8685 RDMs. Big difference)

Note that sometimes the online upgrading does not work, and you may get an error message to call an 877 number, which is now defunct but still resides on .bomb...Ignore it and just call web support. They might put you on hold while they call LH but they will get the job done.

From April to September 2018 it was possible to confirm and waitlist P,Z-class LH flights with a GPU. Confirming and waitlisting is no now longer possible, but previously waitlisted segments will continue to clear as/if available.

Checking for Upgrade Availability

Upgrades to E, C and F come from the R, I and O fare bucket, but its a subset, which theoretically is not the same as the award subset. If awards are available it is a strong indication the upgrade is available too. (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/24861289-post342.html)

In case of upgrade clearing but eticket refresh problems:

Quote:

Originally Posted by oliver2002

Both longhaul LH segments cleared into I after being on waitlist. The first didnt get stickered, so the DCS (amadeus altea) rejected online and agent checkin. The eticket helpdesk had to manually update the first coupon for the DCS to accept the coupon. My seat in C was safe, since the PNR was updated correctly, just the ticket was not updated completely to the satisfaction of the DCS. Everyone looking at the booking agreed the upgrade was legit, so you will not be denied boarding or downgraded, just budget enough time

Quote:

Originally Posted by oliver2002

The LH GA must have called the eticket helpdesk and pointed out the * SSR remark in your reservation that shows an upgrade was applied and the e-ticket just needed a fix/sticker. See my experience above.

Checking for availability prior to calling

Quote:

Originally Posted by oliver2002

Upgrades to E, C and F come from the N, I and O fare bucket, but its a subset, which theoretically is not the same as the award subset. If awards are available it is a strong indication the upgrade is available too.

Each LH flight segment requires a separate GPU
A single GPU can be used to only upgrade a single LH flight segment, And that GPU cannot be extended to include another LH flight segment or another UA flight segment.

Problems getting mileage credit for upgraded LH segments

Numerous reports of denial of mileage credits (RDMs, PQMs, PQSs, PQDs) for upgraded tickets. This issue is probably due to LH uses the same fare bucket for mileage awards and upgrades. It seems patience, persistence, and documentation of the originally paid fare are needed to get credit.

You probably won't get credit by simply submitting the online form or asking a CSR to do so for you. A CSR needs to submit a System Issue Form, together with the mileage request, explaining that you flew in I class, but you paid for a mileage-earning booking class.

T-10

While the original system did not allow the upgrade waitlist to carry on past t-10 hours, the have been multiple reports that this is no longer the case. If not cleared in advance - the upgrade wait-list will last all the way until the door closing. UA has not updated the text on the LH GPU upgrades to reflect this change.

Last year, we indicated that we were working to make electronic the paper-based process to request Global Premier Upgrades on flights operated by Lufthansa. Today we are launching a new online portal for these upgrades on most Lufthansa flights, which enables customers to request and confirm GPUs as early as time of ticketing.

You can find complete information on the Lufthansa GPU page on united.com, but here are some brief highlights about the transition to the new process:

Lufthansa GPU requests will be electronic: No more paper certificates. Starting today, you may go to the Lufthansa GPU page on united.com to learn more about the process and link to an online portal where you can request your upgrade. The request may be made as soon as your ticket is issued, up to 10 hours before flight departure.

Please note: The online process works for flights marketed with a Lufthansa flight number (e.g. LH431). For codeshare flights marketed by United (e.g. UA8837, operated by Lufthansa), please contact the MileagePlus Service Center to make the request, rather than going online.

Paper certificates remain valid for a very limited time: Lufthansa will retain limited capability to accept paper certificates for flights through January 31, 2015. However, acceptance is at Lufthansa’s discretion and may vary based on station capability, so we highly recommend you convert to the online process as soon as possible. If you currently have paper certificates already issued for future flights, please mail them back to using the return address on the front of the certificate, with a request that they be re-deposited to your account for future use. After today, we will no longer issue paper certificates.

Lufthansa handles clearance priority: Your request may be confirmed instantly if upgrade seats are available. If upgrade seats are not available, you may choose to be placed on Lufthansa’s internal upgrade waitlist.

Please note: Currently, waitlist requests will remain valid until 10 hours before departure. If Lufthansa does not clear your upgrade request by this time, we will automatically re-deposit the GPU into your account.

How does one 'force' UA's website to show a H,Q,etc fare class when booking on it and wanting to specifically book into that fare class for the purpose of using a GPU?

When I try forcing it, I get "fare class not available" despite it having valid numbers on expert mode for the lufthansa segments. If I don't force it, my "economy flexible" is the U fare. The displayed "economy" fare is W. Can I get something in the middle? Or is the U fare the 'lowest' GPU fare available right now?

I just booked BLR-FRA-SFO for 2 pax on Sun, Sep 9th in H-fare (LH755/LH454). One really odd thing was that the UA code share flights I booked had availability all the way down to V while the LH only showed Y9/B9 in economy (and J9 in business, while UA code-share has J/C/D open). Any idea what may be going on?

I booked it on the UA codeshares and websupport then moved it over to LH by calling an LH agent, them opening H in Amadeus for my booking, and then UA reissuing the ticket on 016 again. Then applied GPUs.

It is really far out still so I'm hoping they'll clear, but that LH availability was making me wonder, any ideas?

I just booked BLR-FRA-SFO for 2 pax on Sun, Sep 9th in H-fare (LH755/LH454). One really odd thing was that the UA code share flights I booked had availability all the way down to V while the LH only showed Y9/B9 in economy (and J9 in business, while UA code-share has J/C/D open). Any idea what may be going on?

LH does strange things with their own inventory... all I can says is, it happens.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrt88

It is really far out still so I'm hoping they'll clear, but that LH availability was making me wonder, any ideas?

It's probably too far out to read much into availability, although FRA-SFO on a Sunday is always going to be a really tough sell. Dunno about BLR-FRA.

This may sound ridiculous, but is there a way to search by a particular fare class for Lufthansa on either their website or United's? I want to book BOS to MUC for July in a eligible booking category, but cannot for the life of me figure out how to search for the correct code that is eligible. I've already looked at United metal, but want to avoid connecting if possible.

This may sound ridiculous, but is there a way to search by a particular fare class for Lufthansa on either their website or United's? I want to book BOS to MUC for July in a eligible booking category, but cannot for the life of me figure out how to search for the correct code that is eligible. I've already looked at United metal, but want to avoid connecting if possible.

Honestly probably easiest to price it on ITA and call UA to book. You can use the UA site to search by fare class but this is likely to put you on a UA codeshare instead, so will require a call to fix regardless.

I just booked BLR-FRA-SFO for 2 pax on Sun, Sep 9th in H-fare (LH755/LH454). One really odd thing was that the UA code share flights I booked had availability all the way down to V while the LH only showed Y9/B9 in economy (and J9 in business, while UA code-share has J/C/D open). Any idea what may be going on?

I booked it on the UA codeshares and websupport then moved it over to LH by calling an LH agent, them opening H in Amadeus for my booking, and then UA reissuing the ticket on 016 again. Then applied GPUs.

It is really far out still so I'm hoping they'll clear, but that LH availability was making me wonder, any ideas?

This may sound ridiculous, but is there a way to search by a particular fare class for Lufthansa on either their website or United's? I want to book BOS to MUC for July in a eligible booking category, but cannot for the life of me figure out how to search for the correct code that is eligible. I've already looked at United metal, but want to avoid connecting if possible.

did you try to enter it on the United website and it did not return anything? What is the route and dates?

What are the chances of my Q fare, GPU "I" waitlisted LH 454 FRA-SFO on Jan 17 (currently almost T-24) to clear in the next hours or at the gate? Currently the flight is J9, C,D,Z,P all 0. Seat map shows ~30 empty seats.

What are the chances of my Q fare, GPU "I" waitlisted LH 454 FRA-SFO on Jan 17 (currently almost T-24) to clear in the next hours or at the gate? Currently the flight is J9, C,D,Z,P all 0. Seat map shows ~30 empty seats.

What are the chances of my Q fare, GPU "I" waitlisted LH 454 FRA-SFO on Jan 17 (currently almost T-24) to clear in the next hours or at the gate? Currently the flight is J9, C,D,Z,P all 0. Seat map shows ~30 empty seats.

Thilooks like the flight is oversold in Y, so your upgrade is rather certain.